Al Reem island is a man-made island just off the tourist club area of downtown Abu Dhabi. There are a chain of islands consisting of reclaimed land which are now the site of numerous construction projects in the nation’s capital. It looks by the number of apartment complexes and high-rise buildings going up, that Al Reem set to increase the supply of apartments from the main island of Abu Dhabi. I think of Abu Dhabi’s geography as similar to New York City whereas Manhattan island is the main part of NYC; Abu Dhabi island is the main part here. There are outlying suburbs and districts around the main part of each city as well. The rapid growth of Abu Dhabi and the UAE in general, has made the capital a non-stop construction project similar to Dubai. Rents are not for the faint of heart as a tiny 1 bedroom apartment can easily set you back 90,000 dhs or more per year. Two bedroom apartments rent prices in Abu Dhabi seem to start around 130,000 dhs per year (that’s over 30,000 USD)! Many landlords expect the rent to be paid up front in a single lump sum payment. Hopefully one’s employer will take care of this, otherwise many people take out a loan to pay the rent off during the course of the year, plus interest of course. Al Reem island has some great views of the capital and Persian Gulf. You get the impression the island is not quite completed yet as over 80% is simply sand with lots of construction markers put up to possibly section off different sites for future development. Once completed, I would imagine the area will be as densely populated as downtown Abu Dhabi nearby. One of the best landmarks on Al Reem Island is theGate Towers, which resemble the famous Marina Bay Sands in downtown Singapore (which is the most expensive building ever built) with three buildings topped with a bending platform that hangs into the air.